Then, in my head, I tried to rank them in a Top Five. Mostly, it was unsuccessful, because, amongst a heap of epic, well-written tributes to the good (and bad) of America, putting my five favourites in any particular order isn't easy.
First, some honourable mentions:
Toby Keith - "American Soldier"
Halestorm - "American Boys"
Kenny Chesney - "I Go Back"
Kid Rock - "Born Free"
John Mellencamp - "R.O.C.K. in the USA"
Uncle Kracker - "My Hometown"
Richie Sambora - "Made In America"
Lynyrd Skynyrd - "Sweet Home Alabama"
Eric Church - "Springsteen"
Alabama - "Dixieland Delight"
Alright, here in no particular order, are my Top 5 favourite songs about the USA. Happy Birthday, America!
Toby Keith - "Made in America"
Key Lyric: "He's got the red, white, and blue flyin' high on the farm, Semper Fi tattooed on his left arm"
The country artist from Oklahoma is famous for his staunch patriotism and the conflict that sometimes follows with his fellow artists (most famously, the Dixie Chicks), so it made sense that Toby would honour America with a fist-pumping anthem that was the lead single from his 2011 release, Clancy's Tavern.
A sure-fire crowd-pleaser wherever Keith plays, the song strays towards the sort of arena rock, albeit with a slight country leaning, and tells the story of a farmer (a United States Marine Corps veteran) and his wife, a schoolteacher, who are fervent American patriots, bemoaning the lack of American-made products available, in comparison to imported goods.
Bruce Springsteen - "Born in the USA"
Key Lyric: "Got in a little hometown jam, so they put a rifle in my hand. Sent me off to a foreign land, to go and kill the yellow man"
Not the pro-American anthem that most people thought it was, the title track to one of Springsteen's most popular and highest-selling albums the Boss, America's favourite working-class hero, would ever release, and certainly one of the more angry tracks on an otherwise upbeat and positive 1985 release, particularly in comparison to his previous release, the dark Nebraska.
Despite it's fist-pumping chorus (that's been used out of context ever since) "Born in the USA" is an angry song about the affects of the Vietnam War on those who went over...and those who came back from that ugly, faraway conflict a different person, unrecognisable to their friends and families. Springsteen's powerhouse delivery is as good as it gets in music.
Neil Diamond - "America"
Key Lyric: "Every time that flag's unfurled, they're coming to America"
Otherwise known as "They're Coming To America", this bombastic (as only the Hot August Nights singer can sing) ode to the hundreds of thousands of immigrants who led so much strife and hardship in their own countries (particularly in Europe after the two World Wars), seeking a new beginning in the USA, which was very much seen as the Land of Opportunity in those days. Unlike some other songs on the subject, this is a positive one, with soaring choruses and strong verses. Hard not to think of Ellis Island when I listen to this one.
Arguably the most patriotic song Neil Diamond has ever written, America was originally recorded for the 1980 remake of the The Jazz Singer, and incorporates the traditional patriotic song "My Country, 'Tis of Thee" at the end.
Following the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Centre, Diamond modified the lyrics to the song when he performed it live. Instead of singing, "They're comin' to America" near the end of the song, he now sings "Stand Up For America".
Otherwise known as "They're Coming To America", this bombastic (as only the Hot August Nights singer can sing) ode to the hundreds of thousands of immigrants who led so much strife and hardship in their own countries (particularly in Europe after the two World Wars), seeking a new beginning in the USA, which was very much seen as the Land of Opportunity in those days. Unlike some other songs on the subject, this is a positive one, with soaring choruses and strong verses. Hard not to think of Ellis Island when I listen to this one.
Arguably the most patriotic song Neil Diamond has ever written, America was originally recorded for the 1980 remake of the The Jazz Singer, and incorporates the traditional patriotic song "My Country, 'Tis of Thee" at the end.
Following the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Centre, Diamond modified the lyrics to the song when he performed it live. Instead of singing, "They're comin' to America" near the end of the song, he now sings "Stand Up For America".
Brad Paisley - "Southern Comfort Zone"
Key Lyric: "Oh, Dixie Land, I hope you understand. When I
miss my Tennessee Home, and I've been away way too long, I can't
see this world unless I go, outside my Southern Comfort Zone"
I don't mind a bit of modern country, but Brad Paisley - also, a fantastic guitarist to rival anyone else going around in any genre of music at the moment - is about the furthest from modern country as there is in Nashville, so I'd never heard this song until a friend from Tennessee set me onto it.
Through an impressive video clip that takes him to a lot of places far from his southern comfort zone, Paisley spins (somewhat clichéd, but certainly still true) imagery of the southern states of America and all the things that make it so unique a sort of homesick homage from someone who's departed their southern comfort zone.
Ironically, so has the friend who turned me towards the YouTube clip. Written as a love letter from a southerner far away from everything he knows, I can see how it might make her feel.
No political motivation here, just a good, anthemic song, with an electric banjo backing that was Atkins' fifth #1 hit on the Billboard Country Charts, the song, written by Brett James & Angelo Petraglia, features Atkins talking about all the things he loves about small-town America, from kids selling lemonade from a stand outside their house, to prom nights, Chevrolet muscle cars and, of course, everyone's favourite American musical hero, Bruce Springsteen.
Yeah, maybe it's formulaic and not a particularly adventurous track lyrically, but it paints a nice picture of the best things about America, particularly in small towns from coast to coast, and is a staple on radio at this time of the year.
Through an impressive video clip that takes him to a lot of places far from his southern comfort zone, Paisley spins (somewhat clichéd, but certainly still true) imagery of the southern states of America and all the things that make it so unique a sort of homesick homage from someone who's departed their southern comfort zone.
Ironically, so has the friend who turned me towards the YouTube clip. Written as a love letter from a southerner far away from everything he knows, I can see how it might make her feel.
Rodney Atkins - "It's America"
No political motivation here, just a good, anthemic song, with an electric banjo backing that was Atkins' fifth #1 hit on the Billboard Country Charts, the song, written by Brett James & Angelo Petraglia, features Atkins talking about all the things he loves about small-town America, from kids selling lemonade from a stand outside their house, to prom nights, Chevrolet muscle cars and, of course, everyone's favourite American musical hero, Bruce Springsteen.
Yeah, maybe it's formulaic and not a particularly adventurous track lyrically, but it paints a nice picture of the best things about America, particularly in small towns from coast to coast, and is a staple on radio at this time of the year.
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